“We do not have many choices but we promise that it will get better ,” says Minister over Electricity Tariff Protest

FASHOLA MEETS POWER SECTOR OPERATORS IN LAGOS, APPEALS TO LABOUR , CONSUMERS FOR UNDERSTANDING OVER MULTI-YEAR TARIFF ORDER

Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola SAN, Monday chaired the Second Monthly Meeting of the Power Sector Operators in furtherance of his determination to find practical solutions to issues affecting the nation’s electricity industry  even as he appealed to the organized labour and consumers for understanding over the new Multi-Year Tariff Order which came into effect on February 1.

The meeting which held at the Alagbon Transmission and Distribution Complex in Ikoyi, Lagos had in attendance representatives of all the Power Generation Companies (Gencos) , Distribution Companies (Discos) and the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), as well as various government agencies such as the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trader (NBET), the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and  the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA) responsible for the regulation and development of the electricity industry.

The oil and gas industry was also represented at the meeting by senior executives of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC), Gas Aggregating Company of Nigeria (GACN) and the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC).

Fielding questions from newsmen after being conducted round the completed and ongoing power projects at the Alagbon Transmission and Distribution Sub-station ,  under the management of the Eko Distribution Company which co-hosted the meeting , Fashola said although the decision to increase tariff was a hard one, without proper pricing of Power, the  whole system would collapse after sometime.

The Minister, who likened the decision to a case of quinine and Malaria, added “It is a hard decision, but we appeal to all for understanding because we are doing it in the interest of all the people. We do not have many choices but we promise that it will get better”.

Giving assurance that the problem in the Power Sector could be solved with the right tool, Fashola declared, “I know that the people who have been disappointed over a long time will feel a sense of concern that tariff has gone up but the truth is that the government of yesterday lacked the courage to tell the people the true situation”.

“This is why you had review of tariff every two years which presupposed that tariff would increase every two years. But we have done a 10 year tariff and if you look at the tariff closely you will see that about two years from now we will begin to go down a sliding scale and whatever price the tariff offers”.

Fashola appealed to the media to help in enlightening the populace on the essentials of power  production and distribution adding, “Everybody must know how power is produced and distributed”.

The Minister, who also expressed reservation about how the privatization exercise was conducted by the last administration, however, said he would move on with what he met on ground and try to improve it assuring that his ministry was capable of solving the problem.

“This is the problem that has been here for the last 16 years if you put it mildly and about 100 years ago if you put it more elaborately. We are less than a hundred days in office but I can assure you we will solve the problem if you give us the tools”, he said.

The Minister who explained that the decision to hold the Power Sector Operators’ meeting in different parts of the country was to facilitate experience sharing and provide the opportunity for on the spot tackling of problems, said the meetings would also help achieve a better appreciation of the processes of electricity production and the peculiar challenges of each operator. 

  

Speaking specifically about the Alagbon Substation which he had just inspected, the Minister said it sank completely many years ago and was being rebuilt hence its still being under construction. 

According to him, the Distribution Centre of Eko Disco had metered distribution panels through which the power received from the Egbin intake line is measured because it must be paid for just as the gas provider for the generating company must be paid and likewise the receiving consumers of the electricity sent to different areas  in the power production economic value chain.

Appealing for stability in the sector, the Minister noted that as at January this year, the nation recorded an all time high electricity supply of 5000 megawatts attributing the success to the stability that has been experienced in the market. 

“It is important to also state that the stability we have experienced in the market is comforting and we must do everything to protect it . That stability is giving confidence to the banks, to the gas investors, to the Gencos and a lot of them are coming into Nigeria. They want to participate in power and it’s because of the stability that the Government and leadership  of the  President have provided and we must do everything to protect that stability”, the Minister said.

Noting that the sector needs a lot more participants given the growing population of the country, Fashola said the challenges of Gas, transmission and the way the privatisation of the sector was handled are being addressed adding that he would rather move forward than lamenting the past. 

Reiterating that the nation and various stakeholders should allow stability to endure, the Minister stated that rather than start a disruptive fight , labour and all concerned stakeholders should embrace the path of productivity.